Income Tax Returns filed prior to accident must be prioritized for assessing deceased's loss of dependency.

On June 20, 2014, the deceased, Rajubhai Bhayani, died in a vehicular accident when an offending vehicle (bearing Registration No. GJ-05-YY-7249) driving on the wrong side dashed against his car.

The appellants (dependants of the deceased) filed a claim petition under the Motor Vehicles Act, and the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Surat, awarded Rs. 9,77,000/- with 9% interest on October 7, 2023.

The Tribunal assessed income based on minimum wages despite Income Tax Returns (ITRs) being on record.

The appellants moved the High Court seeking enhancement of compensation, specifically challenging the quantum.

1. Whether the learned Tribunal erred in disregarding the Income Tax Returns of the deceased for assessing his annual income.

2. Whether the appellants are entitled to enhanced compensation under the heads of future prospects, conventional heads, and consortium based on established precedents.

The Court applied the principles for calculating compensation in motor accident death cases established in National Insurance Company Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi [(2017) 16 SCC 680], which standardized the additions for future prospects (25% for age 40) and amounts for conventional heads.

It further relied on Magma General Insurance Company Limited v. Nanu Ram alias Chuhru Ram & Ors. [(2018) 18 SCC 130] regarding the entitlement of each legal representative to 'parental', 'spousal', and 'filial' consortium.

Additionally, the court followed the rule that proved ITRs filed ante litem motam (before the dispute) serve as reliable evidence of income.

The Court found that the Tribunal committed a reversible error by ignoring the ITR for Assessment Year 2013-14 (Mark 44/6), which was filed on 23.03.2014, prior to the accident, showing a net annual income of Rs. 3,42,708/-.

Applying the law, the Court recalculated the dependency: adding 25% for future prospects (age 40), then deducting 1/5th for personal expenses given the seven dependants (widow, parents, and four children) and applied a multiplier of 15.

The Court then determined that the Tribunal’s award for conventional heads was "meagre" and increased the "Loss of Estate" and "Funeral Expenses" to Rs. 18,150 each, while awarding Rs. 48,400 to each of the seven claimants for consortium.

The Insurance Company was directed to deposit the additional amount of Rs. 45,38,720/- with 9% interest per annum from the date of the claim petition till realization, with the entire amount to be disbursed to the appellants after verifying deficit court fees.